Excavation

Date 24 February 2003 - 28 February 2003

Event ID 1034316

Category Recording

Type Excavation

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1034316

NJ 872 286 Forty small test trenches were dug between November 2002 and February 2003 to investigate potential features identified by a geophysical survey.

The assessment of the gardens immediately surrounding Tolquhon Castle confirmed the survival of a range of garden features. The evidence includes plant beds, pathways, drains, cobbled areas and walls, and although the exact chronology of discrete features and deposits is unclear, the main elements of a complex garden layout are present.

Archaeological monitoring and recording were undertaken in December 2002 while a trench was excavated within the confines of the outer courtyard. The trench was located near the SW corner of the custodian's cottage. Evidence was found of an old courtyard affected by at least two subsequent phases of construction and repair. The earliest layout seems to have been a roughly cobbled courtyard within the main outer courtyard walls.

G Ewart 2003

Sponsor: Historic Scotland

Kirkdale Archaeology